


Tengoku.Chikyu.Jigoku Vol. One

by Noizchild



Series: Tengoku.Chikyu.Jigoku [1]
Category: Ghost Hound
Genre: Angels, Confusion, Earth, Gen, Heaven, Hell, Memories, Multi, Murder, Mystery, Other, Tokyo '87, reconnection, school fire
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-09-13
Updated: 2011-11-08
Packaged: 2017-10-23 17:18:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 11,461
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/252831
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Noizchild/pseuds/Noizchild
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Heaven, Earth, and Hell. Three worlds that should never cross, right? But thanks to some complicated events, three different groups are pulled in together without a direction out. This is meant to be three separate stories that merge into complex one.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. This is Hell

**Author's Note:**

> And here is our story.

This is Hell

*Ben*

Webcam turned on and loading. Monitor now on. Microphone headset now on as well.

I reached forward to adjust my new dark blue webcam before I start with my online journal.

Uh… hello everybody. This Black Hawk and here is my new online journal account. My last one got hacked into and purged a couple of days ago. So, I had to go and create a new account this morning. I should have done it as soon as I got the e-mail. But, I’m busy with school and work these days. Plus, I’m a bit of a lazy bum at heart. I’ve been one since I was in junior high. Don’t worry; I still have the copies of the previous entries from my other account. I just need to finish uploading and posting them to the new account. But for right now, here I go with the first entry on the new account:

I clear my throat.

Nothing ever really changes here. It just repeats itself until it grinds to a halt. In adulthood, disillusionment sets in. And it all goes crashing down from there. And pretty soon, what do you have? Piles of lifeless corpses that rot away into your old age in a nursing home. Do you remember when you were a kid, you had big dreams? Then sadly, life murdered each one of them. Not all in one go, mind you. You had the joy of watching helplessly as your childhood dreams lie there as they slowly took in their last breath before they went into that good night. Pretty soon, you are left with dead dreams, a dead-end job, failed relationships, and a depressing reality.

I’m sorry, I digress. I will start again.

I know what you’re thinking. Who the hell is this? No? I’ll tell you anyway.

My name is Benjamin Nelson. But please, call me Ben! I was born in 1987 and… Okay, I’m starting to sound boring, so I’m going to cut to the big details. I live with my best friend and girlfriend in a rural apartment complex in Suiten. Our company transferred us there under our work study program. It’s not much to look at, but hey, it’s somewhere to live, right? I have my best friend and girlfriend to share in this exciting, new experience of Japanese country life. I dropped my head.

Who am I kidding? This is pathetic! I’m twenty years old and I have already fucked up my life. I suck at everything. My major is a waste. My work study program is nothing but a joke. I hate my job. I am a loser! My parents look on me with pity. My girlfriend makes Hitler look like a sane human being. Okay, that’s going a bit too far, but stay the night at my apartment with us. She can make even the most laid-back person take a trip to a padded cell. I know she loves and cares about me, but it’s just nerve-wracking from day to day. That will unfold itself as well. Give me a moment there. I paused to regain myself. But yet, I’m not alone. To give a better picture of the whole situation, let me back up some here.

I was born in Tokyo on May seventeenth in 1987. I am not the only one, you see. Nine other people I know were also born in Tokyo in the same year. Crazy, right? Usually, it wouldn’t really mean much, but as they say, this is only the first step into a complicated story. There was also a school fire in ’92 and then we ended up scattered out from there. But over time, we ended up reuniting under some bizarre chain of events. It wasn’t just us either. There are three teenage boys that have something called “out-of-body experiences.” Weird, I know. Not as much as the little girl at that shrine that they encounter. Then, there are the angels. Oh, yes. Yes. There are angels—with the son of Satan, no less. Oh yeah, there is even a pedophilic priest along the way too. Please don’t ask.

Okay, how is this adding up, you ask? Bear with me. I don’t think I can fully explain what the hell is going on myself. Most of this just happened. Okay, there is some reasoning behind it. Even that is a mind-fuck in itself. I shrugged.

I don’t know. Try to keep up with the story if you can. Even I can’t keep up with what’s going on at times. Let’s see, what time is it now? I glanced down at the clock on the taskbar of my laptop screen. 7:45. Hm… What else can I talk about until my girlfriend gets in? Hm…

I sat back and took a moment to think about it.

Well, I guess I could talk about the girlfriend and the best friend for a little bit. But, only briefly. Now who to start with first. Kele or Julie? Hm…

I weighed my options for a couple of seconds. Which one will get me in trouble a lot less if I open my big trap? Kele it is then.

Okay, Kele Gowon is my best friend. Or as he says it, best mate. Yes, he is English. His mother is a black woman from Liverpool and his father is a Nigerian military man. Like me, Kele was born in Tokyo in 1987. His birthday is the thirteenth of October. He too is on the work study with me. Kele and I go back since before the ’92 school fire. I chuckled. Funny story on how we met.

Suddenly, my bedroom door opened. I looked behind me. A little smile came onto my face. And speak of the devil, look who it is.

“Sup?” I asked my good pal. Kele looked over at my laptop and webcam with a puzzled look on his face.

“You’re still recording a journal?” he asked.

“I told you my previous account was hacked into,” I said. “So, I’m starting fresh and talking about all of us.”

“You mean--?” he asked.

“Yeah,” I said. “Us and all of them.” I noticed his face of concern. I kept my smile at him.

“Easy there,” I said. “I won’t go into too much detail. I want to live. I don’t want Julie to get arrested for murder.”

“I was about to say,” Kele said. I smiled at him. Good to see my old pal has managed to keep most of his sanity after all of this.


	2. One E-mail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Julie meets up with Max after many years.

One E-mail

*Julie*

Before this story goes any further, we have to back up to explain how everything ended up in a muddled up mess. I’m Julie by the way. I seen you’ve already met Ben and Kele. Ben, as you heard on his online journal, is my boyfriend while Kele is his best friend. I hope my boyfriend didn’t run his mouth about me again. Otherwise, he’s going to be dead! Grrr! Anyway, back to the current story.

I am the IT manager at Sango Sunrise Corporation. (I don’t know too much about computers, just the basics. But, my managing skills are my saving grace in that place. Otherwise, I would be screw!) It’s not really what it’s cracked up to be. I basically have a do nothing job. That goes for the same thing of my team of Ben, Kele, and Shane. Like typical, the office day was slow. I checked my e-mail at work. Even that’s boring at work.

Junk. Junk. Junk. Messages from grandma. Messages from work. But then, one message caught my eye. Huh? Who is silverflamerunner@hotmail.com? Curiosity peeked, I clicked on the message.

 

Meet me at the noodle bar at noon.

I rolled my eyes at the content. Great! Our boss, Ichi, is hitting on me again. I don’t see why he can’t leave me alone. I already have a boyfriend. Ben may be an idiot, but at least he’s not a perv. I was about to deleted the message when I noticed the attachment that came with it. “’92 School Fire” was its name. As if unconsciously, I clicked on the file. I clicked, “open file.” An old news article popped up on the screen. A few seconds into reading, sparks went off in my brain. I began to remember Oko Elementary in 1992. I was five years old when the fire broke out. Kele, Ben, and I ended up going to different schools as a result. The fire was well-known, but I still wasn’t sure of the source. Suddenly, an IM box popped up on my screen. And sure enough, silverflamerunner@hotmail.com invited me for a chat. I should say no, but I’m really intrigued now. So, I clicked accept.

 

JWPorter: How much do you know about the ’92 fire?

Sliva: It snowed that day, Gordon was out sick, I did my monkey impression for you that day because it made you laugh, you would were mad with your mother because she had a new boyfriend then, and you had on a little pink hoodie.

JWPorter: What was on the hoodie?

Sliva: Brown and white cats. It was your favorite. You even got mad when I spilled paint on it the day before the fire started.

That was enough for me. Back then, I used to wear a bright pink kitty hoodie during my elementary years. I grew out of it as soon as I was twelve. It still makes me sad that I had to give it away. Oh well, I hope some little girl is happy with it now. However, I can’t worry about that at the moment. I also took in the other two key facts in the message. I don’t talk about my mother unless the person happens to be really close to me. In that list is Ben, Kele, Shane, Lisa, Krista, a few old friends from Oko Elementary, and Max. Come to think about it, the monkey thing sounds just like Max. Right then, I my eyes shot wide open.

JWPorter: Is your name Max Thaws?

Sliva: Yes.

I sat back in my chair. Okay, this just changes everything. When did Max get here in Suiten? How long had he been in town? And how did he get my work e-mail? I now just had to find out.

I didn’t tell my team where I was going for lunch. Ben and Kele don’t need to be in this just yet. I need to know if this is really Max that I was just talking to just minutes earlier. I came to an outdoor noodle bar downtown. I looked around at my surroundings. Mostly old men hung around these types of places. I really feel like a child due to lack of people my age here. I barely remember what Max looks like now. All I remember is a skinny kid with really dark hair. I don’t have any high expectations for what he looks like now. This whole thing might be an elaborate prank at my expensive. Either way, just had to go and see.

I almost jumped when I felt someone tap me on the shoulder from behind. I whirled around to see some guy giving me a goofy grin. I took a better look at him. Well, this guy looked pretty skinny as I remembered Max to be growing up. Only now, his dark hair now had some white blonde streaks in it. He had on all black and gave me a little wave.

“Hi!” he squeaked at me. I blinked at him with a blank look on my face.

“Max?” I asked. The guy still grinned at me.

“That’s me!” he said. I couldn’t believe it at first.

“You’ve… changed your hair,” I managed to get out of my mouth.

“Yeah,” he said. “It’s been like this since I was twelve.” He noticed my face.

“Not convinced?” he asked. I shook my head at him. This guy frowned at me.

“Oh come on Jules, what do I have to do to prove to you otherwise?” he asked. Only one thing one thing popped into my head.

“Do the monkey thing!” I said without blinking. Max grinned in pride at me.

“Gladly!” he said. He started to impersonate a monkey out in the wild. Trying to stay serious proved to be futile when he started to act like a primate. I just broke out into hysterical laughter. There much have been people staring at me, but that thought was miles away from me at the moment. Max finally stopped and stood up straight.

“Good enough?” he asked. It took me five minutes for me to stop laughing and talk to him. I took in a deep breath to help me.

“Good enough,” I said. Max grinned at me. Just like the good old days.

“So, how long have you been in Suiten?” I asked once we sat down and got our meals. Max gave me a little shrug.

“Close to three years,” he replied. I blinked at him.

“All of that time and you didn’t call?”

“How could I? The number I had for you was an old cell number. I managed to track down Ben through his video journals online. Even that proved to be work.”

“Wait, you found Ben’s journals?”

“Yeah. I was just bored and wondering how my old friends were doing and I found his journals by accident. I got in contact with him and he gave me your work e-mail to contact you.”

“I see…”

“You’re the fourth person I have found so far.”

I raised an eyebrow at him. “Fourth?”

“Ben was first. Then came Kele. After that was Lisa. And then you.” Max leaned in close to my face. “I still have to find the other five.”

I gave him a puzzled look. “Other five?”

“Yep, yep. I’m trying to get hold of Krista, but her phone been disconnected.”

I don’t know what I was thinking when I said, “I have her number right here.” Max’s smile lit up bright.

“Really?” he asked.

“Sure, hang on,” I said. I reached into my purse and drew out my phone. Max quickly bowed his head.

“Thank you angel!” he said. I forced myself to smile. So, it can be clear to say that Max was the one to bring all of us “Tokyo ‘87s” together and throw us into a new land confusion. But, he’s not the only one. There are others. Stick around and bear with us in this madness.


	3. Gordon to Krista

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gordon and Krista meet up after so long.

Gordon to Krista

*Gordon*

I once knew a girl named Krista Lauder. She was a bright little girl. A little loud and hyper, but filled with big dreams. We used to live next door to each other. She always followed me around when we were back in Oko Elementary school. Our classmates called her my girlfriend. I used to get mad and fight them off. I used to try and keep my child manliness by being a typical jerk in front of the other guys. However when Krista and I were alone, we played nicely together.

Why am I telling you this? Here is why:

Back in October ’07, I was coming back from school and waiting for the bus. I stood waiting while I wondered why ever since the school fire, but life had gone to Suckville. I’m twenty years old and still live with my mom in Suiten since I was eight. I have no job yet. (I have applied to six different places, but no one has called back.) Other than that, I have nothing else going for me. Or rather, that’s how my part in this story started out. (Oh, you will hear some start similar to this from my other friends. Just a fair warning.)

In my boredom, I decided to people-watch just like I used to when I was kid. Not much going on at this bus station. Just a mom with two screaming kids, an old man with a pipe, three schoolboys, and a woman with red pigtails. The red pigtails drew me in closer to her. I focused the rest of my attention on this woman.

She looked close to my age, maybe a little bit younger. College student by her pink and black backpack. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her before. Tourist? I highly doubt that. What’s there to see in Suiten, really? She must be from this town, but how come I’ve never seen her around before?

The woman looked around for something overhead. I kept my eyes on her cork-heeled shoes. I’m not liking how she’s leaning back in them. I don’t think you’re supposed to lean back on hills like that. Uh-oh, she going to fall!, I thought. She doesn’t even notice how she’s leaning back in her heels. I should do something to help her…

In a few seconds, it occurs to that she is falling. The woman begins to flail her arms all around to keep her balance. That’s not going to go well. Oh, don’t fall. Don’t fall! Please, don’t fall. I think I might have jinxed her; because she started falling backwards to the ground. As if on instinct, I rushed over to rescue her. The woman looked up at me while she was inches off of the ground. I looked deep into those soft blue eyes of hers.

“You alright?” I asked. She gave me a quick nod.

“Yeah,” she said one breath.

“Let me help you up,” I said. I slowly pushed her to her feet. The woman brushed herself off and took another breath.

“Why would you lean back like that and not notice you’re about to fall?” I asked. “That just seems kind of careless, don’t you think?” I honestly thought that she would be pissed off at me for asking that. But instead, she gave me a little shrug.

“Dunno, I guess,” she said. She noticed me squinting hard at her. The woman blinked at me.

“What?” she asked. I shook my head at her.

“Nothing, you remind me of someone I used to know for some reason,” I said. She gave me a puzzled look.

“Who?” she asked.

“I can’t really remember right now,” I said. That led to another thing I had wondered about her.

“Say, are you a tourist or something?” I asked. Her ponytails swayed back and forth as she shook her head.

“Nah, I’ve lived in Suiten since I was thirteen,” she said.

“Thirteen?” I asked.

“Yeah,” she replied. “In fact, I’m looking for an old friend that lives here.”

“Really?” I asked.

“Yeah, here is his address,” the woman said as she pulled out a piece of paper. I took it and read it to myself.

“241 Ryu Commons?” I asked. “I know where that is.”

“You do?” my new acquaintance asked. “Take me there!” My face suddenly dropped.

“What?” I asked. She quickly grabbed me by the hands.

“Please!” she pleaded. “I’ve never been down that part of Suiten before and I don’t want to get lost! Pleaseeee!” I gritted my teeth at her. She’s starting to sound annoying. Let’s see, help her out or endure more whining. I breathed out a heavy sigh. Anything to shut her up.

“Fine,” I said. “I’ll help you out.” Her eyes lit up brighter than a thousand stars in the sky.

“Oh thank you!” she cried as she hugged me wildly. “You have made my life easier!” I chuckled nervously at her.

“Right…” I mumbled. I glanced up at the sky. What the hell did I just agree to?

In ten minutes, the bus pulled up to the stop and everyone got on board. This woman and I sat in the front sideways seats. I looked at the side of her face. She is kind of cute in a strange sense. Her cheeks looked an apple-rosy red. She really does look like someone I used to know. I just can’t connect the dots.

“Still trying to remember?” the woman asked me. I quickly remembered to earth.

“Hm?” I asked. She made another puzzled face at me. It took me a moment to get her question.

“Oh, yeah,” I said.

“Still can’t remember?” she asked. I shook my head.

“Ah,” she said. The bus took off down the road. On the way into town, I got lost in my thoughts again. Why does this woman seem so familiar to me? It just doesn’t make sense. I got pulled back into reality when I felt something leaning on my shoulder. I turned my head and noticed my new “friend” sound asleep on my shoulder. A puzzled look came onto my face. Maybe I should push her off… But yet, she looks so cute sleeping there. Just like my old friend in Oko Elementary. I can’t remember which one. Krista? Julie? Robin? Definitely not Julie. She was a tough little brat. Even when she was crushed, she forced herself to stay strong. I highly doubt that she would break down and cry, let alone fall asleep on a boy’s shoulder. So, it would have to Robin or Krista. My thought is Krista. Just not sure yet.

The bus pulled up at our stop. I tried to tap my new friend on the shoulder.

“Hey, hey,” I whispered. “Wake up! Here’s our stop. Hey! Hey!” She didn’t budge. Oh, this isn’t good. I looked out the window as I clinched my teeth. The doors drew closed and the bus rode away. I lowered my hand and looked at the driver.

“Okay…” I mumbled. “Now what?” The woman slept on as we rode away from the neighborhood.

Two hours later, my friend woke up and looked around.

“Oh, we’re here,” she said. I nervously chuckled to myself. Does she not know that this is the second time that we’ve been here? Oh well, couldn’t complain. We exited the bus and continued our quest. This neighborhood looked like a ghost town. I looked around, nervously.

“Are you sure this is the right place?” I asked.

“Yeah,” she said as she kept walking. “This was the last place that he lived at.” I’m not so sure about this.

“Alright…” I mumbled.

“Something wrong?” she asked. I shook my head.

“Nothing,” I lied. We kept walking to the address on the paper. After ten minutes, we found the house in question. My face dropped.

“What the hell?” I asked. My friend sank to her knees in tears.

“No!” she whimpered. “It can’t be!” We weren’t looking at a house. Instead, the address led to a vacant lot for sale. My friend broke down into tears. I walked forward and patted her on the shoulder.

“It’s okay,” I whispered to her. “We’ll find your friend.” She looked up at me with big tears in her eyes.

“How?” my friend whimpered. I went silent and shrugged. Hadn’t really planned that far ahead. But somehow, I couldn’t let her know that. So, I kept up my blatant lie.

“I don’t know, we’ll think of something,” I said. I helped her to her feet and walked her out of that ghost town.

I took her home with me and made her some green tea. She sat at the living room table in a daze. I sat down next to her and handed her a cup.

“There, there,” I said. “Maybe he moved away.” She shook her head from side to side.

“Uh-uh,” she mumbled. I tried to keep smiling.

“Do you have a picture of the guy?” I asked. She nodded at me.

“I have one picture of us together when we were kids,” she told me. “Hang on.” The woman reached into her cameo jacket, pulled out an old photo, and handed it to me. I took a good long look at it. The woman looked six-years-old with her dark red pigtails and wearing a bright yellow sundress. With her, sat a little boy about the same age dark in a dark blue t-shirt and black shorts with scruffy dark brown hair. I stared on at the picture, mesmerized for a couple of minutes. Little sparks began to light up in my brain.

That’s me with Krista, I thought. Suddenly, a huge wave smacked me in the brain. I jerked my head forward at the woman sitting before me.

“Krista?” I asked in shock. Her powder blue eyes widened at me.

“Gordon?” she asked me. I had been with my old childhood friend this whole time and didn’t realize it.


	4. Max to Ben

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max gets in contact with Ben after many years.

Max to Ben

Live from Koko Boarding House:

Ben turned on his laptop and got online. He logged onto Skype. Right away, he noticed a chat invite. Hm? Who is it now? He clicked on the box. The young man raised an eyebrow at the name.

Who is QuickSilver? Usually, he would hit “decline,” close the box, and that was end of it. But, this name was different. For one, Ben had seen it somewhere else before. But I can’t remember where. He dug through his brain to find the source. As he did so, the young man clicked “accept.” A new chat window popped up on the spot.

QuickSilver: Ben! It’s been so long. How have you been?

*Ben*

Okay… I stared at the message and began to type.

Wired Little Geek: Uh… who are you? And how do you know me? Have we met before?

I sat back and waited. Then, a reply popped up.

QuickSilver: It’s me, Max!

Wired Little Geek: Huh?

QuickSilver: Max Thaws. Remember?

Wired Little Geek: No…

QuickSilver: Oko Elementary School. Did you go there?

Wired Little Geek: Yes… Did you?

The next response blew me completely out of my mind.

QuickSilver: I drew on the classroom wall on the day of the fire.

Puzzled, I typed:

Wired Little Geek: What did you draw?

QuickSilver: Kamion, the dragon. You remember him?

Wired Little Geek: Vaguely? Red eyes and yellow teeth?

QuickSilver: Yes!

Wired Little Geek: And black wings?

QuickSilver: Yes!

Wired Little Geek: With the stumpy arms and legs.

QuickSilver: YES!

That’s when the lights all flipped on in my brain. Crap!

Wired Little Geek: Max? Maxxie?

Then, a video feed request popped up for me. I looked up at my webcam. Couldn’t hurt to see this guy, could it? I turned on my webcam and clicked “accept.” The channel popped up on my screen. A guy with dark jet black hair and white blonde streaks stared back at me. He had on some black pajamas. I blinked at him as I slid on my microphone. Max gave me a little wave.

“Sup?” he asked.

“What happened to your hair and did you just get out of bed?” I asked.

“I highlighted it years ago,” he said. “And yes.”

“Okay… how did you find me?” I asked.

“Your webcam journals,” Max said. I blinked at him in a blank way. People are actually watching those things?!? Max gave me a little grin.

“I don’t get it,” I said.

“Get what?” Max asked me back.

“Why get in contact with me after all of these years?” I asked. He just gave me a small shrug.

“Felt like it,” he said. “But, you’re not the only one I need to find.”

“I’m not?” I asked as I cocked my head at him. He shook his head at me.

“Uh-uh,” Maxxie said.

“Who else?” I asked. He took a moment to run back all of the names in his head.

“Let’s see, there’s Lisa, Gordon, Russell, Robin, Krista, Matt, Kele, and Julie,” he answered. Wow, that many people!

I then unintentionally said, “I don’t know how to get in contact with the others, but I can give you the work e-mails of Kele and Julie.” Max’s deep red eyes looked really big and amazed.

“You would really do that?” he asked.

“Yeah sure, hang on,” I said. I brought up my e-mail, wrote a quick message with my best friend and girlfriend’s e-mails, and hit “send.”

“Got them?” I asked.

“Just did. Thank you so much!” my old friend cheered.

“Anytime,” I said with a smile. I don’t know what happened in that hour I was alone in that apartment of the boarding house, but I think I just opened us all up into one complicated curveball into another.

And for that my friends and girlfriend, my bad. Seriously and utterly my bad.


	5. This is Heaven

This is Heaven

*Baby Doll*

The white ceiling and bright yellow walls in the bathroom are suffocating. I almost feel like they are crushing on me when I escape to think. Laying in the bathtub helps clear my head. Right now, I’m trying to gather up my thoughts. I remember almost everything about myself. The only thing I can’t really remember is my real name. That one little detail about me has been wiped away from my mind. But yet, I do remember how and when I died.

I was sixteen when I was murdered. I remember that it was October of ’05. My body was found the next afternoon I was dumped. In fact, my case still isn’t cold.

As I lay here in the bathtub, more memories flood my head. Ones about my grandmother. I lived with her for most of my life. My parents got divorced when I was only a baby. So, my grandmother took me in. She and I got along really well. I even called her “mama” when I was a child. She treated me like I was her daughter. She raised me to be independent. Mama and I had a good system.

My life wasn’t extraordinary in any way. I used to be a normal teenage girl in Suiten. That was until that night on October ’05.

A knock on the door drew me out of my thoughts. I glanced up at the sound.

“Yes?” I asked.

“You done in there, Baby Doll?” one of my housemates asked. I quickly sat up in the tub.

“Yeah,” I said. “I’ll be out in a second.” I rose to my feet and climbed out of the tub. The door knob twisted as I did so.

“It’s locked!” she shouted.

“I said hang on a minute!” I yelled back. I walked over to the door and unlocked it. I waited as it opened wide. An angel close to my age stood on the other side, frowning.

“Hello Izumi,” I said. She shook her head at me.

“I don’t understand,” my close friend said.

“Understand what?” I asked.

“Why do you come in here even when you don’t really need to use the bathroom?” she asked. I only gave her a little shrug.

“I only need to get away to think,” I reasoned. “This spot happens to be the only quietest place to be.”

“Why do you use the other two bathrooms?” Izumi asked.

“Because, this is the only bathroom that you and I share,” I pointed out. “I can’t go into their bathrooms. Anything else?” Izumi shook her head once. I took a heavy breath out.

“Right…” I said. I walked around her and headed down the hall. My thoughts picked up with each step. I have lived in this house for a year now. My relationships with the other five angels here are still stabilizing. They didn’t trust me much in the beginning. But over time, it got better. Izumi has latched onto me first. Then Natalia warmed up to me inch by inch. Yoshiko followed suited. Himeko and Liz both are still taking a while, but we’re all getting there.

I pushed open the door to my room. I looked around at the sunny yellow and faded rose pink with a heavy heart as I remembered my old room back at my house. Mama still lives in Suiten after all of the mess I was put through on that night. She doesn’t even know that I just on the other side of town. I have tried to contact her before, but she can’t see or hear me. I’m still trying to figure out a way to get touch with her to at least tell her that I am alright.

I’m starting to make myself sad all over again. I shook myself over those thoughts and went into my room. I lied down on my bed and reached over to a box on the dresser. It takes me a couple of seconds, but I managed to find my Ipod. I smiled as I held the small device in my hands. This little baby can cheer me up and put me back on track all of the time. I can already feel my heart rising out of the pit to normal again. I slipped the pink and white earbuds in my ears and turned on the music. “Supersonic” by Oasis fills my ears. I can never understand what they are saying. I struggled with English-language class when I was alive. Because of that, I take evening tutoring classes to keep me from failing. Even there, I still don’t understand English too well, let alone speak the language. The music is pretty good, though.

That’s right; I need to get to work before I fall asleep to the next song that comes after “Supersonic” on the playlist. I reached above my head and felt around for my notebook. I dragged it down into my view. I hold my eyes open as I open the book to the first page.

October 18th, 2005

9:00 p.m.: I left my tutoring class

9:29 p.m.: Decided to take a shortcut through the woods to get home quicker

9:32 p.m.: A murder

From there, I was chased, beaten to death, and dumped into a river.

I sighed as I flipped over to the next page. I can remember every single little detail of my death to the very second that I saw them throw my body into the river. I was killed by two boys a little biter older than me, nineteen years old tops. One of them smelled like rotting apples. I can still feel the whack of the baseball bat against my body. Not the aluminum type either. I’m talking about the wooden Louisville Slugger type. I shuddered at that thought.

I can’t think about that right now. Must get back to work. I looked on at the second page.

People Involved:

Me

Two boys

Another girl close to their age

That other girl. I don’t know much about her. We never even really met. I just saw her die before I did. Yes, yes, she was their real target. And me? Just my luck that I had to be there that night, going on that particular shortcut. Yeah, sucks to be me then. I turned to the next page in my notebook. No use bitching about the past. Just find your killers, bring them to justice, and rest in peace after that. That was the bargain I made with the officials in Meifu after all. Grandma always taught me to make good on a promise, no matter how impossible it looks. I have to do this for her, that girl those boys killed, and myself.

A knock came on my bedroom door. I paused my music and looked up.

“Yeah?” I asked.

“Yoshiko and I are going out for sushi,” Izumi called on the other side. “You want to come with us?” I sat up on my bed.

“Sure, I’ll be out in second!” I answered her without a single thought.

“We’ll be outside, waiting,” Izumi said. I waited to move as I heard footsteps disappear down the hall. I looked over at my white bunny alarm clock. Noon, already? It doesn’t feel like it. Then again, I am feeling break hungry. Time for a break now, I guess.

I put away my notebook and Ipod and head out of the room. Solving my murder will have to wait like it always does. Bah, I’ve got time.


	6. This is Heaven

This is Heaven

*Baby Doll*

The white ceiling and bright yellow walls in the bathroom are suffocating. I almost feel like they are crushing on me when I escape to think. Laying in the bathtub helps clear my head. Right now, I’m trying to gather up my thoughts. I remember almost everything about myself. The only thing I can’t really remember is my real name. That one little detail about me has been wiped away from my mind. But yet, I do remember how and when I died.

I was sixteen when I was murdered. I remember that it was October of ’05. My body was found the next afternoon I was dumped. In fact, my case still isn’t cold.

As I lay here in the bathtub, more memories flood my head. Ones about my grandmother. I lived with her for most of my life. My parents got divorced when I was only a baby. So, my grandmother took me in. She and I got along really well. I even called her “mama” when I was a child. She treated me like I was her daughter. She raised me to be independent. Mama and I had a good system.

My life wasn’t extraordinary in any way. I used to be a normal teenage girl in Suiten. That was until that night on October ’05.

A knock on the door drew me out of my thoughts. I glanced up at the sound.

“Yes?” I asked.

“You done in there, Baby Doll?” one of my housemates asked. I quickly sat up in the tub.

“Yeah,” I said. “I’ll be out in a second.” I rose to my feet and climbed out of the tub. The door knob twisted as I did so.

“It’s locked!” she shouted.

“I said hang on a minute!” I yelled back. I walked over to the door and unlocked it. I waited as it opened wide. An angel close to my age stood on the other side, frowning.

“Hello Izumi,” I said. She shook her head at me.

“I don’t understand,” my close friend said.

“Understand what?” I asked.

“Why do you come in here even when you don’t really need to use the bathroom?” she asked. I only gave her a little shrug.

“I only need to get away to think,” I reasoned. “This spot happens to be the only quietest place to be.”

“Why do you use the other two bathrooms?” Izumi asked.

“Because, this is the only bathroom that you and I share,” I pointed out. “I can’t go into their bathrooms. Anything else?” Izumi shook her head once. I took a heavy breath out.

“Right…” I said. I walked around her and headed down the hall. My thoughts picked up with each step. I have lived in this house for a year now. My relationships with the other five angels here are still stabilizing. They didn’t trust me much in the beginning. But over time, it got better. Izumi has latched onto me first. Then Natalia warmed up to me inch by inch. Yoshiko followed suited. Himeko and Liz both are still taking a while, but we’re all getting there.

I pushed open the door to my room. I looked around at the sunny yellow and faded rose pink with a heavy heart as I remembered my old room back at my house. Mama still lives in Suiten after all of the mess I was put through on that night. She doesn’t even know that I just on the other side of town. I have tried to contact her before, but she can’t see or hear me. I’m still trying to figure out a way to get touch with her to at least tell her that I am alright.

I’m starting to make myself sad all over again. I shook myself over those thoughts and went into my room. I lied down on my bed and reached over to a box on the dresser. It takes me a couple of seconds, but I managed to find my Ipod. I smiled as I held the small device in my hands. This little baby can cheer me up and put me back on track all of the time. I can already feel my heart rising out of the pit to normal again. I slipped the pink and white earbuds in my ears and turned on the music. “Supersonic” by Oasis fills my ears. I can never understand what they are saying. I struggled with English-language class when I was alive. Because of that, I take evening tutoring classes to keep me from failing. Even there, I still don’t understand English too well, let alone speak the language. The music is pretty good, though.

That’s right; I need to get to work before I fall asleep to the next song that comes after “Supersonic” on the playlist. I reached above my head and felt around for my notebook. I dragged it down into my view. I hold my eyes open as I open the book to the first page.

October 18th, 2005

9:00 p.m.: I left my tutoring class

9:29 p.m.: Decided to take a shortcut through the woods to get home quicker

9:32 p.m.: A murder

From there, I was chased, beaten to death, and dumped into a river.

I sighed as I flipped over to the next page. I can remember every single little detail of my death to the very second that I saw them throw my body into the river. I was killed by two boys a little biter older than me, nineteen years old tops. One of them smelled like rotting apples. I can still feel the whack of the baseball bat against my body. Not the aluminum type either. I’m talking about the wooden Louisville Slugger type. I shuddered at that thought.

I can’t think about that right now. Must get back to work. I looked on at the second page.

People Involved:

Me

Two boys

Another girl close to their age

That other girl. I don’t know much about her. We never even really met. I just saw her die before I did. Yes, yes, she was their real target. And me? Just my luck that I had to be there that night, going on that particular shortcut. Yeah, sucks to be me then. I turned to the next page in my notebook. No use bitching about the past. Just find your killers, bring them to justice, and rest in peace after that. That was the bargain I made with the officials in Meifu after all. Grandma always taught me to make good on a promise, no matter how impossible it looks. I have to do this for her, that girl those boys killed, and myself.

A knock came on my bedroom door. I paused my music and looked up.

“Yeah?” I asked.

“Yoshiko and I are going out for sushi,” Izumi called on the other side. “You want to come with us?” I sat up on my bed.

“Sure, I’ll be out in second!” I answered her without a single thought.

“We’ll be outside, waiting,” Izumi said. I waited to move as I heard footsteps disappear down the hall. I looked over at my white bunny alarm clock. Noon, already? It doesn’t feel like it. Then again, I am feeling break hungry. Time for a break now, I guess.

I put away my notebook and Ipod and head out of the room. Solving my murder will have to wait like it always does. Bah, I’ve got time.


	7. The Pest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baby Doll has a slight problem.

The Pest

Present Day.

He just kept asking her many questions.

“You have a boyfriend?”

“Why?”

This wasn’t the first day either.

“So, you from around this town?”

“Yes.”

He first approached her ten days before.

“So how old are you?”

“Sixteen.”

He found her at the pizza take-out place, waiting for her roommates.

“So can I have your phone number?”

“No.”

Since then, he won’t go away.

“What do you mean?”

“Why do you want my phone number?”

He manages to find her in almost every public place.

“To call you.”

“And why would I let you do that?”

Persistent boy, he was.

“Cause.”

“Cause why?”

She began to think that she had a stalker on her hands.

“I want to get to know you.”

“Really now?”

Lucky for her, he didn’t exactly know where she lived. But long would that last?

“Yeah.”

“Uh-huh.”

It’s kind of annoying really.

“Come on, I really do!”

“Sure you do.”

Annoying like gum stuck to the bottom of her shoe.

“Look, at least tell me your name.”

“You want my name?”

She doesn’t know how to handle him too well.

“Yes.”

“Fine then. Baby Doll. It’s Baby Doll.”

She doesn’t know how to send him on his way from her for good.

“Baby Doll?”

“Yeah.”

He’s laughing at her.

“Really?”

“Yes…”

She nodded as she said this.

“Okay…”

“What? You don’t believe me?”

He gave her a little shrug.

“I didn’t say all of that.”

“Yeah right…”

Right then, she found the answer to this persistent, nagging problem to this boy.

“Really, I didn’t say that!”

“Fine then. You want to know me so badly? Look up Suiten, October 15th, 2005.”

He gives her an odd look.

“Really now?”

“Yeah. Have fun.”

She walked away with a smile on her face. There, problem solved.

Or not…


	8. Baby Doll has a New Tool

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baby Doll decides to use Masayuki for her own murder mystery.

Baby Doll has a New Tool

*Baby Doll*

I read over my notes outside in front of my apartment. The music pounding in my ears didn’t do much to help me to look over what I might have missed. Four people there. Two men, another girl, and myself. Other girl was the intended victim. The other three looked like they came from the city. I have never seen any of them in Suiten before. But, which city did they come from? I closed my eyes to put myself back into that night. Osaka… Osaka… Osaka…

My eyes opened in a flash. Of course! One of those guys had an Osakan accent. That’s about all I know however. I shut my eyes and gritted my teeth. Come on! You remember it so well. That stupid night keeps playing itself in your head over and over again. Just get out the right details. But, that problem got shoved aside when I felt someone just inches away from my face. Against my better judgment, I opened my eyes and a pair of green eyes stared deep into mine. I screamed and fell backwards.

*Masayuki*

I didn’t even blink at her. “Hey there.”

Baby Doll sat back, looking at me as if I was the devil himself. I waited as her shock turned into anger. She tried to slap me, but I grabbed onto her wrist. Baby Doll gritted her teeth.

“Asshole!” she screamed. I only smiled at her.

“Now, that’s not a nice thing to say,” I said. Baby Doll puffed up her cheeks at me. I gave her a little smirk. If we were under different circumstances, maybe I would’ve asked her out. Maybe… She is kind of cute when she is angry like that. Baby Doll tried to slap me again, but I grabbed her other wrist. She struggled to try and free herself from my grasp. My “friend” let off a frustrated groan.

“Let me go!” she snapped. I smiled as I shook my head at her.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that,” I told her.

“And why not?!?” she snapped.

“Because you’ll hit me,” I reasoned.

“No I won’t!” Baby Doll yelled.

“I’m not taking my chances,” I told her. “I’ll let you go when you calm down.”

“I am calm!” she barked.

“Doesn’t look like it to me,” I said. I let her struggle in my hands a little bit longer before she ran out of breath and went still.

*Outside*

Baby Doll glared at him. “What the hell do you want?!?”

Masayuki gave her a little grin. “Kurosawa.”

She gave him an annoyed-puzzled look. “Huh?”

“That’s your real last name. Kurosawa Baby Doll. Couldn’t find your first name.”

She gave him a cold sneer. “Yeah, so?”

“You lived with your grandmother, Keiko, since you were born because your parents were getting a divorce. You just lived a normal life, but you struggled with the English language. So, you stayed behind every week for tutoring.”

“And I’m supposed to be impressed by this?”

He’s not done yet. “You weren’t the intended victim, were you?”

Baby Doll looked away from him. “What makes you say that?”

“Here’s what I think happened: You were coming home from tutoring when it was late, so you decided to take a shortcut through the woods. But along the way, you witness two thugs murder a woman. Somehow, you caught their attention and as a result, they beat you to death and threw your body into the creek?”

He looked her deep into the face. “How am I so far?”

*Masayuki*

I think I’ve gotten to her. Her lower lip is trembling in discomfort. She’s trying to fight the pain she feels from me bringing all of that back up. She left me no choice at this point. Now, I am debating on letting her go or not. She may be sad at the moment, but she can also still slap me for making her relive all of that. As I weigh my options, my fingers begin loosen their grip around her small wrists. For some reason, I don’t even try to stop them. They are just now barely holding her still now.

Finally, I just let her wrists drop to her sides with a loud plot.

*Baby Doll*

My mind became tangled up with emotions. I don’t even know what I was thinking at that very moment. This dumbass hit a nerve within me. If I was thinking straight, I would’ve throttled him by now. I don’t even think that was on the table anymore. I kept my eyes to my skirt as I thought about how to work with this sudden kick in the teeth.

Damn him! He just had to go there. He knows too much about me now. I peeked up at him. Him being all smug about it is really getting to me! I clinched my fists as I gritted my teeth. Jerk-face!

That’s when I came up with a great idea.

I loosened my fists and threw up my hands in the air as I looked up at my potential new tool. “Well done,” I said. “You got me!”

“Do I now?” he asked.

“Yep!” I lied with a nod. “In fact…” I quickly took him by the hand. He watched me with a confused look on his face now. Now I’ve got the sucker!

“You know so much about my case, that you’re going to help me find her and my killers!” I said. He raised an eyebrow at me.

“And if I refuse?” he asked.

“Well then, I just can’t let you go with so much information on me, can I? So, you have no choice but to help me!” He only gave me a shrug.

“Fine,” he said. “I’m Nakajima Masayuki, by the way.” I smiled at my new little tool named Masayuki. Whatever. This might just work out in my favor after all.


	9. What the Hell Happened to Us?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natalia speaks.

What the Hell Happened to Us?

*Natalia*

It’s kind of hard to explain what is going on. I don’t even know which end to start at. It’s just a tangled up mess. No, that doesn’t even try to cover what this is. I’m still trying to find the right words to describe it. So far, no luck.

Anyway, here we are. On this… bizarre whatever it is with no clue how it started or how and when it’ll stop. And when I say we, I talking about my housemates, those boys we keep running into, those twenty-something guys, and myself. That’s right. Twenty people mixed together in this. Three separate groups that should never interact with each other in the beginning. But this happened and here we are. Actually, whatever this is hasn’t stopped at all. To my surprise along with everyone else, it’s still going. But yet, I don’t understand why on both parts. Why this is still going on and why we are all surprised.

For some reason, it doesn’t look that bad. There are little bonds forming between us all, I guess. Baby Doll seems a little bit tolerable towards about Masayuki lately. She still feels a little bit annoying. I assume that I have caught the eye of one of those twenty-something guys. Problematic in my case. I don’t need another relationship with a human. Hmm, looks like I’m going to have to try and chase him off. But, that’s for another time for me to talk.

As for what’s going on, oh buddy! I have pieced together scraps of a theory for my end. Someone is tracking us. Liz noticed little bugged device on the kitchen ceiling yesterday evening. I had to check my room this morning for more. Heaven’s getting worse on us now. They want us to return back to them. As you will and have picked up, we don’t want that. What’s wrong with sticking around here? I used to want to go back, but now I’m not too sure about that. Maybe I want to stay. Why? It’s not about him. I refuse to say it. I don’t love him! It’s not like that. He’s just a thorn in my side. The fringe over his eyes looks stupid and he just needs to eat something! Grrr! I just get angry thinking about him all over again.

I took a breath to calm myself down.

Anyway, I’m not the only one who wants to stay. Baby Doll’s trying to find her killer. Hime still wants to sleep with as many men before she leaves. I don’t know what Izumi, Liz, and Yoshiko why want by staying here.

You know, it’s kind of funny how we caught onto what was happening. No warning signs. No bright flare. Nothing big like that. It all just happened like a thief in the night. I feel stupid that none of us noticed into we were right in the middle of it. But now, there isn’t much to do, but sit back and watch it all unfold until…

I happened to pause and look up. Funny. Now why does everyone have their lights on at this time of night?


	10. This is Earth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Masayuki does a little digging on Baby Doll.

This is Earth

*Masayuki*

I sat at the computer in the library. Am I really going to do this? It almost sounds too ridiculous. Still, it doesn’t hurt to look. I glanced around me for a quick second before opening the web browser. I typed in “Suiten, October 15th, 2005” and hit search. It almost seems too silly. Ninety-seven articles about that subject appeared before me. I clicked on the first link I saw. The whole article popped up before me.

“October 17th, 2005,” I read to myself. “Two bodies found in the woods. Two female bodies were found in the woods by a jogger in the early morning. It is uncertain if the cases are connected.” Next article.

“The case was believed to be a hit from a gang. One of the girls was believed to be from Tokyo. Not many clues have been found to support this theory. The second girl is believed to be a local.” Next article.

As I read each article, I began to put together a brief image in my head. So, two murders took place on that night. The culprits are mostly guys from the Yakuza in Tokyo or something of that nature. The first victim was the intended target while the second one looks like collateral damage. The motive seems to be unpaid debt. To me, the first victim seemed to be a prostitute on the run from Tokyo and hiding in Suiten. Makes sense; there’s nothing in this boring little town. But what of the second victim? Wrong place at the wrong time. From there, I had it all figured out.

That’s what I believed at least.

But then, I came across another article. I got a chance to see a picture of each of the victims. The second girl’s picture caught my attention.

That’s Baby Doll, I thought. No, that can’t be right. I stared at the picture hard. It looks just like her, but…

I shook my head. It’s just a joke. Yeah, that’s it. One huge joke on me. I felt myself grinning.

She just did this to creep me out and make me stop asking questions about her, I thought. Pretty clever, I have to say. But, that’s not going to work. I’m going to get her for that and expose her for the truth. Sorry Baby Doll, but the joke’s on you!

That was my first thought at least. I still don’t understand how I could be so dead wrong.


	11. Nothing to Worry About

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Taro sees Masayuki Baby Doll and meets a mysterious woman with red hair.

Nothing to Worry About

*Taro*

I don’t understanding what’s happening to us either. Each time I think that I have it figured out, some other piece of the puzzle just comes along changes everything for me. I’m already trying to find Mizuka’s spirit again and now there are angels that have come into the picture.

I probably should back up on this.

The encounter with the angels started when I noticed Masayuki talking to some girl who I’ve never seen before in my life. But yet, she looks so familiar. I can’t really understand why. I can’t help but feel like I’ve seen her somewhere before. I’m almost tempted to her ask her. It’s not really my business, but still…

It’s now October 21st and I see Masayuki talking to that girl again. I probably should walk away and don’t ask questions. But yet…

They look like they are in a heavy conversation. I watch them from a short distance. Masayuki did most of the talking like he normally did. The girl with the strawberry blonde pigtails listened on in silence. She would occasionally stop him to ask a question. Of course, he would answer and keep on talking.

The conversation is always the same to me. They keep talking about solving some murder. I keep hearing saying her murder, but she looks perfectly alive to me. All of this listening led to try something bold today. As the girl turned to leave, I decided to follow her. I waited until Masayuki walked off to find Michiro before I trailed the girl. As I kept my distance with my following her, I tried to place where I had seen her before. She looks like she is from around here. She definitely not from our school. High-schooler, maybe?

She led me further into town before I lost track of her. I looked around the empty street. Now where did she go? Nobody just vanishes into thin air just like. Maybe… she’s not human. No, that can’t be! Yet, it wouldn’t be the first time I had anything from the Hidden Realm. Okay, so she may not be human, but what is she? A ghost? Or something else?

I felt my whole body go stiff as I felt someone breathing on my neck. I slowly glanced over to my right. White-blue eyes gave me a heavy stare.

“Is there any reason why you’re following me so much?” she asked. I tried to turn to her, but she forced me to face forward.

“Don’t turn around,” she warned me. “Just answer the question.”

“Why?” I asked.

“Why what?”

“Why does there have to be a reason?”

“Because, I said so. Now answer my question.”

“Not really.”

“Uh-huh.”

“How do you know Masayuki?”

“Why? How do you know him?”

“He’s sort of a friend to me.”

“Sort of a friend?”

I shrugged at her. “It’s a long story. Now how do you know him?”

“He’s helping me find something.”

“What?”

She leaned in closer to my ear. “A little murder.”

I whipped around and got a better look at her. She’s smiling at me. I felt a chill go up my spine at the look on her face.

“Whose?” I asked.

“Mine,” she said. I blinked at her.

“What?” I asked her as if she just told a joke I didn’t get. The girl only smiled and shook her head at me.

“Oh dear, I believe I’ve told you too much,” she said. I blinked at her again.

“What are you talking about?” I asked her. She told a step closer to me. I had to glance up at her to see her face again. I had no idea that she could be so tall close up. Then again, most of everyone is taller than me. She gave me a little smirk as she shook her head and took my face into her small head.

“I could kill you if I wanted just to keep you quiet,” she said. I felt my heart leap into my throat when she said that. I really hope that she’s just telling a very bad joke. She gave me a little smile instead.

“Nah,” she said at last. “I’m just going to send on your very way. So, run along.” I stared at her still confused for what felt like the longest time in my life. The girl then tried to shoe me away.

“Go on!” she said. “Get going! Now!”

“Okay, okay,” I mumbled to myself. I turned and walked away. I thought that was the end to the strangeness for the day. That when I saw a red-haired woman with glasses standing across the street, staring at me.


	12. Woman with Red Hair

Woman with Red Hair

*Taro*

There is this woman following me around. She isn’t that girl I keep seeing with Masayuki. No, this is a different woman. I don’t think I’ve seen her around before. She definitely looks like a foreigner. Almost, but not really. I have never seen somebody with hair that red before in my life.

I usually see her around downtown. That’s how it started out, but lately I’m starting to see her everywhere. She has been hanging around my school as if to wait for me. Sometimes, I see her along the highway. She even stood outside of my house looking like she wanted to go inside. She isn’t really trying to get into the house or anything. She never says a word to me. This woman just stares at me. I don’t even have the slightest clue what she wants.

Finally one day, I gathered up nerved and crossed the street over to her. She didn’t show anything on her face. She seemed to be waiting for me to go over and talk to her. I don’t think I can say why. I made it over to this woman.

“Excuse me; have I seen you around before?” I asked. The woman didn’t speak at first.

“I think I have seen you somewhere before,” I said.

“Where?” she asked. So she does talk. I pushed that to the side and continued on with my questions.

“In town, when I go to school, I even saw you in front of my house,” I answered her. She didn’t say anything.

“I was wondering, why?” I said.

“Why what?” she asked.

“Why are you following me?” I asked. No answer. I tried to keep myself from snapping at this not-moving questioning.

“Why are you following me?” I asked her again. She didn’t speak at first. I was fighting back a scream when she blinked at me.

“Huh?” she asked.

“You keep following me around, why?” I asked. Again, this woman didn’t answer at first. Then, she giggled at me. I raised an eyebrow at her.

“What’s so funny?” I asked.

“Does there have to be a reason?” she asked.

“Well, yeah,” I said. “You keep following me around and it’s pretty creepy.”

“Ah,” she said. Okay, what’s wrong with her? Does she not realize what she is doing is illegal? Especially with what happened with Mizuka and me twelve years ago.

“What do you want from me?” I asked. The woman shook her head at me.

“Nothing,” she said. Not a reason I bought. I resisted pointing that out to her. She would just confuse me even more if I did.

“Who are you?” I asked. The woman giggled at me again. There really must be something wrong with her. She only smiled at me.

“Robin,” she said. This time, I blinked at her.

“Huh?” I asked.

“My name is Robin,” she said. Then, the woman turned and walked away. I stood there frustrated and even more confused than when I first talked to her. That made no sense to me what so ever and she didn’t even answer any of my questions. So why did I even walk up and talk to her for?


	13. A Tear in the Tent of Sanity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter of volume one.

A Tear in the Tent of Sanity

*Taro*

I can’t exactly remember how this all started either. I am pretty sure it was something small. Something that would go unnoticed even after we all tried to remember what it was. Whatever it was, that must have started us on this whole thing.

For some reason, I’m talking to Robin more often now. I’m guessing it’s because I’m seen her around so much that it just happened. Today, she sat outside my school waiting for me. I still can’t figure out why she does this. She won’t give me a reason for following me around. I gave on asking her after the third time I talked to her. She looked up at saw me. Her black sunhat shadowed her pale face.

“Oh, it’s you,” she said so nonchalantly. I gave her a strange look like I normally do. She looked over at me school.

“Reminds me of my old school,” she said.

“I see,” I said, humoring her.

“Oko Elementary was a big school before it burned down,” she said. That sentence itself caught my attention.

“Did you say Oko Elementary?” I asked. Robin swayed her head a little bit.

“Yes,” she said.

“You were in that school fire?” I asked.

“Maybe,” she said. Oh great, she’s messing with me again. But then, she looked at me with a little smile on her face.

“You’re the heir of the sake brewer, aren’t you?” she asked. I blinked at her.

“Yes,” I said.

“And your sister’s name was Mizuka, yeah?”

I wasn’t sure where she was going with this. It was like talking to Masayuki when we first met, only this felt much more disturbing. I need to end this quickly as I can before she does something that could open up old wounds. I tried my best not to show what I was thinking on my face.

“Yes…” I said. Robin sat up a little bit.

“You were kidnap victims,” she said.

“Yes…”

“I always wondered why did the kidnapper really do it, eh?”

“I have no idea,” I lied.

“Usually kidnappings are for revenge or money, am I right?” she asked.

“Well, yeah…”

“Funny thing, the motive was neither. So, why did he do it?”

“I think you’ve pushed in far enough.”

Robin gave me a child-like look on her face. “And what happened to your sister?”

I lowered my head at that question. “She’s dead.”

She went quiet from there. “Oh.”

I looked at her with discontent in my eyes. “And what about you?”

“What about me?”

“What about your family? And why are you so interested in my life for?”

I expected her to put me through another annoying head game like she normally did when I asked her questions to find out more about her. She didn’t speak at first as I expected she would. But this time, she gave me a little shrug.

“I am just me,” she said. I tried my best not to lose it at that point. This woman kept getting to me good. So much so that I hated her every time she opened her mouth to spill out more confusing gibberish.

“And what’s that supposed to me?” I asked. Robin rose to her feet with dark green skirt hiding her black stockings.

“I live freely and as for us,” she replied. She turned to walk away, but before she did, Robin glanced over her shoulder at me.

“I’m just curious about such a boy like you,” she replied. She flipped back her dark red hair and walked away. I stood there, blinking. What just happened?, I thought once again after talking to her.

Looking back on that day, I think I know how Robin dragged Makoto, Miyako, Masayuki, and me into what was bound to unfold.


End file.
